The most extraordinary positive development in Czechoslovakia since its creation in 1918, the tumultuous outpouring of patriotism and protest was dared by students and intellectuals and soon embraced steel-workers and elderly pensioners.

In Europe's capital, Brussels, technocrats, strategists and legislators increasingly see their role as being the global balancer between America and China. Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, a German member of the European Parliament, calls it 'European patriotism.' The Europeans play both sides, and if they do it well, they profit handsomely

1896 January 2, Leo Wiener, “Patriotism or Peace”, in The Kingdom of God is within You; Christianity and Patriotism Miscellanies[1], translation of letter to Manson by Count Lev N. Tolstoy:

Patriotism cannot be good. What produces war is the desire for an exclusive good for one’s own nation – that is called patriotism. And so to abolish war, it is necessary to abolish patriotism, and to abolish patriotism, it is necessary first to become convinced that it is an evil.

Economic protectionism within the older member states has, in fact, increased in the past year. Calls for economic patriotism have given rise to efforts to create national champions designed to protect key strategic industries from foreign competition.

The idea that Ireland's rugby and soccer fans would have to go to England to follow their teams was intrinsically unpalatable, Kelly said, but he was also motivated by common sense: "That would have been an immense cost to the economy, it would have been a major drain on the fans, but the prestige and image of the country would also have been affected badly." / His pragmatic patriotism paid off.

"It is not only an international sports event, but also a very important political mission," stated a 2006 opinion article in the People's Daily. "It is not only an Olympic feast for the Chinese people, it can also arouse Chinese patriotism."